About the Authors

Andrew Mason

Joe Kauffman

"Hello Arena Football fans. My name is Joe Kauffman. Born in
Tallahassee, Florida, I moved to Seminole (a suburb of St. Petersburg)
when I was about seven months old. I graduated from Florida State
University with a BA in general communications (after changing from
physics), but my emphasis is in public
and media relations. I was married on July 5, 1998 to the former Erika
Deer, who was kind enough to allow Andrew, Sam and I to use her six
megabytes on the FSU server to house The Storm Shelter
until we found our new home with Simplenet. I
have been to many sporting events---Buccaneers games, Lightning games
(including my first date with Erika), Thrillers of the CBA, Rowdies
Soccer, FSU football, basketball and baseball. But none of that could have
prepared me for the Tampa Bay Storm and Arena Football.

"I was only able to attend two games that first year in the former Florida
Suncoast Dome/ThunderDome, but both were memorable. I can still remember
that first game. In fact, it was the very game where Andrew booed Jay
Gruden (see last paragraph of the Andrew Mason bio). He started most of
the Dome doing that "Chip, Chip, Chip" chant. But it was ending of that
first ever Storm-Firebirds game that made it one of the greatest games in
AFL history when an Albany pass off the nets was intercepted by the Storm
with no time on the clock to preserve a 57-53 win.

"The second game in 1991 was against the Denver Dynamite. The Storm front
office pushed the advertising, trying to break the AFL attendance record.
it was team photo night, and anyone who showed up early could get
autographs with players and have your picture taken with them. It also
helped that working in the front office was the greatest player to ever
wear a Bucs uniform. NFL Hall of Famer Lee Roy Selmon was also available
for autographs. The Storm did get their record, 24,445, a mark that has
only been exceeded twice---a home loss to Orlando in 1993 (28,745, the
current record) and ArenaBowl IX (25,087). That game also had the lowest
scoring first half in AFL history, as the Dynamite had a 3-0 lead at the
break en route to a 30-13 loss to the Storm.

"In 1992, 1993,and 1994, I was only able to attend a total of six games
due to jobs and travel, but in 1995 that changed. Getting season tickets
with Andrew and Sam, I attended all but one home game, a June 24 loss to
the Las Vegas Sting. Since both Andrew and Sam had to be back up in
college on September 1 of that year, I got all of our tickets to ArenaBowl
IX. It was an exciting moment for Storm fans at the game. We had been
waiting five years to win a championship at home, and playing the Orlando
Predators made it more special. There were plenty of Preds fans at the
game with signs, baloons and beachballs with Storm epitaphs written on
them. It didn't matter. The Storm had fire in their eyes that night and
were not to be denied. The game was actually anti-climatic after the
semi-final win over Albany two weeks earlier when Stevie Thomas ran a
muffed kickoff return coast-to-coast with 17 seconds left to put the Storm
in the big game.

"1996 ended up being another year where I couldn't go to many Storm games,
due to a stupid rule that says you must take nine credit-hours during the
summer if you attend a state university. Sam and Andrew had started
The Storm Shelter, and for most of the summer it became my
lifeline of information to the Tampa Bay Storm. I was able to attend one
game that year, the playoff win against Arizona. Since Sam had to go to
Durham, I used his press pass for the game. Let me tell you, the view from
the press box was unbelievable. It was my first time up there, yet the
Storm staff treated me like I was important, not just "some media guy."
But even though the game itself was exciting and boosted the Storm to
ArenaBowl X, something more important to me occured that night. It was the
turning point that caused me to change my college major. I wanted to work
in sports, behind the scenes.

"Now I'm going to brag a little. You see, there was no Storm
Shelter as recently as eight days before the start of the 1997
season, but I got Andrew over to my house, and, using two computers, we
designed and uploaded the site to the FSU server after nearly 36 hours of
non-stop work. We were up and running with a week to go before the first
game at Arizona. As technical editor, my job, besides writing about the
Storm, is making sure the site looks good and is formatted correctly. But
if it weren't for a solid kick in the butt to Andrew Mason, the best site
covering the Storm on the internet would have died when Andrew's account
at the University of Missouri expired on May 17, 1997. Instead, we now
have this awesome project that we hope will be around as long as the Tampa
Bay Storm."

Sam Wolfson

"My name is Sam Wolfson. I was born on July 27, 1976 in the small prairie
town of Wilkie, Saskatchewan, in Canada. In 1980, I moved with my mom and
my younger sister down to Seminole, Florida where I have lived ever since.
I went to St. Petersburg High School to attend the International
Baccalaureate program. I now attend Duke University, where I am majoring
in both mechanical engineering and mathematics.

"One nice thing about this area is that a lot of my family lives here.
Not long after I moved down to the Tampa Bay area, my mom's father decided
to take me, his only grandson, to a Bucs game. My grandpa had season
tickets to the Bucs since their first year. He had five seats on the 45
yard line which he split with my other grandfather. When I went to that
first game, I didn't even like sports. Then I walked into Tampa Stadium.
There was a sunny sky. The grass was green. And everything has a
special look that you just can't get on TV. I think it was love at first
sight. I loved everything about that day. While I can't tell you what
the score was in that game, or even who was playing, that day would change
my life forever. Little did I know, but when I walked into that stadium
for the first time, I would become a Buccaneers fan for the rest of my life.

"But, the NFL season does not last 12 months. Tragically, the regular
season (ie the Bucs' season) only lasts a short 4 months. In an area with
only one sport, this is hard to take. Help arrived in the summer of 1991.
In came an Arena Football team named the Tampa Bay Storm. They were going
to play in the Florida Suncoast Dome. I wasn't really sure that I had much
interest. To me, Arena Football was still little more than a late night
diversion on ESPN. I thought, "What kind of game has uniforms like this?"
Even the media poked fun, with Channel 13 sports reporter Andy Hardy
dressing up in the Storm uniform as a kicker, Stepon Foot. But, my mom
won 4 free tickets to the game, so I went. And I found that it wasn't
half bad. At the time, I wasn't sure that it was half good either. But,
I thought it was nice to see some football, even with walls around the
field. As the team started to win, I started to go to games. I quickly
became a fan. I went to more games. To finish the season off, I got
together with Joe Kauffman to watch the ArenaBowl. We celebrated when
Stevie Thomas hauled in the game winning bomb from Jay Gruden, and we met
the team at the airport when they came home.

"The next season, I started going to every game that I could go to. When I
went to France for a month, I was updated on the team's progress in my
mom's letters. In the next 4 seasons, I enjoyed watching the team capture
two more championships. Then, a unique opportunity came my way. I was
offered a chance to cover the Storm on a webpage by my friend and fellow
Storm fan, Andrew Mason. When I went to that first game, there was no
such thing as a web page. Now, we were going to use one to write about
the team. Wow! I was impressed. I went from just being a fan to being
in the press box. This is an experience that many people in the press,
especially the ones covering a young sport like Arena Football, don't get
to have. Of course, I wouldn't say that covering the team is the greatest
thing in the world for a fan. Impartiality is expected in the press box.
In other words, you can't cheer a touchdown, you have to admire it. In a
way, I will always miss the way I cheered for the Storm with a similar
passion that I cheer for the Bucs. But, I am happy in the knowledge that
I am helping other people to follow the Storm. If I am successful in
this, it is worth any sacrifice I have made. Even if you don't hear my
voice among the thousands in the Ice Palace, my heart will always still be
cheering for the Storm."

Chris Arnold

"I always knew Andrew, Joe and Sam were nuts but they must have blown out
too many brain cells at college (college life will do that to you) to
turn me loose and let me write my own bio. Hello Arena fans! My name is
Chris Arnold and I have been given the honor of being the photographer for
the Storm Shelter. I'm also one of the team photographers for the Tampa
Bay Storm. Coincidence??? Hmmmm... you be the judge.

"I've been shooting for the Storm since the '94 season. When it's not
Storm season, I'm a school volunteer at Hudson High. I help coach Keith
Taylor with the cross country (boys and girls) and track (girls)
programs. Besides helping at meets, I also do the stats and photography
(duh!). I also produce a booklet at the end of the season for the
athletes with all of their stats and pics. It's hard to believe, but I'll
be starting my 19th year of volunteering! All those hours haven't gone
unnoticed... I've been recognised by the district as volunteer of the
year 3 different times at Hudson. The Times and 2 different radio
stations have honored me as well. When I'm not working or doing sports,
there's something else that occupies my time... no Andrew, it's not
sleep but my girlfriend Marilyn. She's a fantastic lady!! She must be
in order to put up with me! I'm lucky to have her apart of my life.

"As you can tell, I'm a sports nut and enjoy working behind the scenes. I
always wanted to work for a professional sports team and was lucky to get
the chance. I know you're sitting there wondering, 'How on earth did
you get in with the Storm?' Well let me tell ya Chester, I was in the
right place at the right time and made the most of my opportunity. The
Storm had a kickoff breakfast the day before the first game of the
season at the ThunderDome. I went up to Storm owner Bob Gries, and
gave him some of the pictures I had shot the year before, hoping to get
noticed. He thanked me and George LaFrance walked up. I was collecting
autographs for my friend Lisa and I asked George for his. He said sure,
so I was thumbing thru the pictures I had (mainly the photos I took from
the preseason game the week before) and that caught Bob Gries' eye. He
asked if he could look at the photos and I said sure. So there I was, Bob
looking at my photos (not the ones I gave him) and George signing a couple
of autographs (including a Detroit Drive pic I shot). Bob liked what he
saw and asked where I shot these. 'From my seat,'" I replied. Then he
asked if I could take even better pictures from the field. 'I'm sure I
could. I'd do my best, if given the chance.' He took my name and left a
media pass for me for the game the next night. I shot from the field and
had doubles made. Well... Bob Gries liked what he saw and as they say,
the rest is history!

"Now what you don't know is that there's alot more
to this story than what's typed but due to time constraints... It's
pretty funny, the guys got a good laugh out of it. The story revolves
around the Storm and events of a former friend, whom I will refer to as
'Dude' (this is only to protect the stupid). Believe it or not,
somebody on this earth actually hates me! Oh well... 'Dude' is a
different story. Anyway...the next time you pick up a game program, more
than likely you'll see a few photos I've taken---all because of a
dream! Now that I've bored you enough, you can resume checking out the
BEST fan site on the internet."